Francis, ‘the people’s pope’, entombed in his favourite Roman basilica

Elise Ann Allen/Crux• April 26, 2025

In the final stage of his earthly journey, Pope Francis was entombed on Saturday in the papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major, a sign of his deep devotion to Mary and his desire to remain accessible to the people.

Some 150,000 people lined the streets to bid a final farewell as Pope Francis’s coffin was carried in an open popemobile during a historic procession from St Peter’s Basilica to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major.

Described by veteran Vatican reporter and analyst Elisabetta Piqué as “the last surprise of a pope of surprises”, the popemobile was an unexpected addition to the funeral procession, as many had anticipated a dark hearse or similar vehicle to carry the coffin to its final resting place.

Upon arrival at Saint Mary Major, the pope’s coffin was welcomed by a group of poor and homeless people, symbolising those whom he prioritised throughout his life and ministry.

Children placed roses on the altar inside the Pauline Chapel of the basilica, which houses the famed icon Maria Salus Populi Romani (Mary, Health of the Roman People) – an image Pope Francis visited after his election, and before and after every international trip.

On each visit, Francis would leave a bouquet of roses as a sign of his devotion to Mary and gratitude for the graces he had received. His final visit to the chapel took place on April 12, shortly before Holy Week and just over a week before his death. After being discharged from Rome’s Gemelli Hospital on March 23, he drove to the basilica, delivering flowers but remaining in the car.

Francis’s tomb is located just outside the chapel, in a niche previously used for storing candelabra.

Irish-American Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican Camerlengo, sealed Pope Francis’s coffin during the burial ceremony in the Basilica of Saint Mary Major on April 26, 2025. He was entombed at 1pm local time during a 30-minute rite presided over by Cardinal Farrell, who governs the Holy See during the sede vacante, along with a small number of senior members of the College of Cardinals.

The tombstone, bearing the simple Latin inscription Franciscus, is made of greyish slate from Liguria, honouring his maternal great-grandfather, Vincenzo Sivori, who emigrated from Italy to Argentina in the 19th century.

For a pope who once said he felt confined behind Vatican walls and who thrived on closeness to the people, his burial in Saint Mary Major – far more accessible than St Peter’s – is deeply symbolic.

Francis, known for shunning tradition and maintaining a cautious mistrust of the Vatican’s governing structures, chose to be buried outside that context, in a place of popular devotion open to all. It is a fitting conclusion to his impactful papacy.

The basilica, constructed in 435, has long housed the beloved Maria Salus Populi Romani, an ancient Byzantine icon of Mary and the Child Jesus, traditionally believed to have been painted by St Luke and brought to Rome in the 6th century.

A favourite among Jesuits, the icon is one of Rome’s most venerated images, credited over the centuries with miraculous interventions, including ending the Black Death, halting a cholera epidemic, and securing victory at the Battle of Lepanto.

Pope Francis’s devotion to the icon began on March 14, 2013, the day after his election, when he visited the basilica to entrust his papacy to Mary. From then on, he visited the image frequently – often 10 to 15 times a year – though less so towards the end of his life.

These visits began with his first international trip to Rio de Janeiro in July 2013 and became a hallmark of his pontificate.

First canonically crowned in 1838 by Pope Gregory XVI and again in 1954 by Pope Pius XII, the Salus, as it is affectionately known, resides in the Pauline Chapel, also called the “Borghese” Chapel.

According to tradition, the basilica was built following a miraculous snowfall in August, after Mary appeared in a dream to Pope Liberius and a devout couple, requesting a church be erected where snow would fall that night. When snow did fall, Pope Liberius marked the church’s outline, and construction was completed a century later by Pope Sixtus III after the Council of Ephesus declared Mary the Mother of God.

The dedication of the basilica is commemorated annually with a three-day celebration, culminating in a Mass during which white flower petals fall from the ceiling to recall the miraculous snow.

Pope Francis led Vespers for this feast for the first time in 2024, praying silently as rose petals showered down, before visiting the Salus icon once more.

Legend holds that when St Helen discovered the icon in the 4th century and brought it to Rome, miracles began to occur. Pope Gregory the Great is said to have carried it in procession during a deadly plague in 590, after which the Archangel Michael was seen sheathing his sword atop what is now Castel Sant’Angelo, signalling the plague’s end.

Another plague was said to have ceased when Pope St Pius V processed with the Salus to St Peter’s Basilica in the late 16th century.

The current chapel was commissioned by Pope Paul V in 1605. Pope Pius XII visited in 1950 after proclaiming the dogma of the Assumption and crowned the icon again in 1954.

Pope Francis joins a long line of pontiffs devoted to the icon, but his bond was notably profound.

In many ways, the icon and the basilica encapsulate Francis’s papacy – from the “miracle” he spoke of at its outset, to his Marian devotion, emphasis on a maternal Church, and his desire to remain close to the people in prayer and solidarity.

Now, he has ensured that this spirit will accompany him not only in death but for generations to come.

(Photo by DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)